Following her prolonged and not entirely satisfying partnership with Stiff Records, Kirsty MacColl renewed her persona by appearing as the saintly female voice on The Pogues’ classic 1987 love song “Fairytale of New York.” Then Virgin signed her to a new deal, and she made Kite: an album of such maturity—both musically and lyrically—that it made her earlier run of singles feel childlike by comparison. The recordings emanate a warmth and fidelity that comes in part from the closeness of MacColl and producer Steve Lillywhite, who were married at the time. MacColl’s trademark wit is here tempered by a newfound vulnerability that could also be the result of her abiding love for The Smiths. MacColl later said that hearing Morrissey’s lyrics is what broke open her own songwriting process. As if to return the affection, Smiths guitar wizard Johnny Marr appears throughout the album and cowrote its final two songs with MacColl. Among the other gems are the gently tropical “Dancing in Limbo” and the opener, “Innocence,” which could easily qualify as one of the best Lennon-McCartney songs that isn’t actually a Lennon-McCartney song.